Effective Practice with e-Assessment: An overview of ... - Jisc

Waymarking learner-focused practice
A number of wider developments can help to
establish a more learner-centred approach to
assessment. These include:
• a technology-rich learning environment
• on-demand testing and item banks
• interoperability of systems
• e-portfolios as assessment tools
A technology-rich learning environment
Some aspects of technology are now well embedded in
classroom practice – for example, interactive whiteboards in
schools and colleges and digital resources on a VLE in higher
education institutions. Effective pedagogic models for online,
work-based and distance learning are also more fully
developed. However, a learning environment that harnesses
the potential in emerging technologies can offer much more
than this. Virtual world scenarios, simulations, mobile and
games technologies are providing new dimensions to the
concept of e-assessment.
The Altered Learning concept illustrates this groundbreaking
use of emerging technologies in assessment – in an
adaptation of the Bioware ® and Atari ® computer game,
Neverwinter Nights , by tutors at West Nottinghamshire
College, players have to improve their numeracy and literacy
skills to progress. Completed tasks are then banked in an
e-portfolio for assessment, with significantly improved
success rates in basic and key skills assessments.
The portability and speed of mobile technologies can also
introduce a new perspective to assessment practice. An
example is the use by tutors of an HP iPAQ Pocket PC at
West Suffolk College to record stills, sound and video files
of trainee chefs at work. Such evidence provides a more
authentic alternative to written work in an e-portfolio, and
can also be transmitted to the tutor’s laptop via Bluetooth ®
technology to illuminate discussions in theory classes.
On-demand testing and item banks
For learners in further education, a testing-when-ready policy
offers an opportunity to manage the burden of assessments,
Merging formative and summative assessment
Coleg Sir Gâr
Coleg Sir Gâr has developed an online BTEC Intermediate
and Advanced Award in IT skills for learners in small
businesses accredited by Edexcel.
Delivered via the internet with tutor support online, this is a
skills-based course which allows learners to progress at
their own pace and has no formal examinations.
Assessment is ongoing and assimilated into the structure
and content of the course – as learners complete tasks,
these provide evidence of their achievement. At the end of
each assignment and each unit, a self-assessment exercise
can be completed to obtain formative feedback.
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Every possible aspect of the assessment process is
automated. Elements in an assignment are marked as
correct or incorrect – the self-assessment questions are
devised to be either right or wrong – and decisions recorded
online. Emails are sent automatically to the learner and tutor
before the results are saved in a secure part of the database.
Any wrong answers generate text advising the learner to
revisit an activity. The process can be completed in minutes
and both internal and external verifiers can access the
records. As a more formal exercise, a final tutor-marked
assignment assesses all the skills covered in the unit.
The systems used, including the VLE – Virtual College – and
the multiple-choice question tool, were developed in house
at Coleg Sir Gâr to provide rapid feedback for learners – an
essential ingredient in maintaining confidence and morale
on a distance learning course.